Strategic Focus & Priorities

When faced with a huge task, it is important and necessary to have a clear sense of direction and focus. The Great Commission - "make disciples of all nations" is one such task we are entrusted with by our Lord. In order to be effective in this task and be good stewards of our resources, we have been led by the Lord to strategically focus on four areas of the world.

The Muslim World (Religious Bloc)

The word Islam comes from an Arabic word, Salama, which means both to surrender and to be at peace. A "Muslim" is a person who surrenders to the will of God. The main sources for theology are the Qurían (or Koran), the words which Mohammad (570 to 632 A.D) claimed were revealed from God, and the Hadith or traditions concerning statements or the practices of the prophet not covered in the Koran.

The largest unreached blocs of people in the world are Muslims, numbering 1.2 billion (year 2001) with over 4000 sub-groups within the family of Islam. Islam is the only one of the world's religions to come after Christianity.

In A.D. 1900 about 12% of the world's population was Muslim, and in 2001 it was reported to be 20%. 25% of the world population follows Islam, but only 2% of all missionaries are working among these people. There are at least 5 million Muslims living in the United States.

Nine First Evan Missionaries are working among these people. We also support several national workers involved in reaching Muslims. Workers in these countries live among these people.

The Eastern Europe (Geo-Political Bloc)

There are 20 countries considered in Eastern Europe with a total population of 335 million people. These were all Communist countries and some of them were part of the former Soviet Union. The primary religion is Christianity Roman Catholics and Orthodox. The Evangelical population is just around 2%.

We have ministries in Ukraine, Romania, Poland, Czech Republic and Hungary. There are nine First Evan missionaries and nine national workers in these countries who live among these people.

The Latin World (Linguistic & Cultural Bloc)

Technically the Latin world is geographical. It includes Mexico and all countries south of it to the tip of South America. Most of the people in this region share a common linguistic, cultural and religious background. They have derived this largely from Spain, Portugal and France culture, based on those of ancient Rome Latium. Because of this "Latin Culture" the people are called Latins and the region is called Latin America. (Source: The World Book Encyclopedia, Vol. 12, 1972)

In 1900, almost the entire Spanish-speaking population was considered Catholic, but in the last 100 years the Evangelical population has grown and is now (2005) about 13%.

Our primary ministry emphases are in Mexico, Colombia and Spain. We desire to expand and include Spanish-speaking people here in the USA and other parts of the world. We have four missionaries and thirty national workers among these people.

The Hindu World (Religious Bloc)

The second edition of the World Christian Encyclopedia (2001) lists the world Hindu population of 811 million (13.5%), 755 million of whom are in India. Another 40 million are in the nations bordering India, and the remainders are among the Indian Diaspora now found all across the world.

There is no single human founder and no date of origin for Hinduism, which is an evolved faith. An incredible diversity of beliefs and practices has been assimilated in its growth over many centuries. It has no simple canon of scriptures like the Bible. Most Hindus are acquainted with only a small percentage of the voluminous books considered scriptural.

In India only 3% of the people claim to be Christians, and the Evangelical population is even much smaller. First Evan has two missionaries committed to this region. We also partner with several national workers involved in evangelism and church planting among these people.